i know that this system has been used in the US for years and it gets rave reviews, only a matter of time before it crosses the pond. the pipes are jointed in a similar way to electical earth terminals using a cramping device which i believe can be operated by hand or electrically.

I've not seen the buteline stuff either and whilst it loks OK i'd like some feedback on it's uses in the real world before I'd trust it.

Now I going a bit off-topic.

Is it important that it just LOOKS like a professional installation?

I see many soldered fittings where the soldering is, frankly, carp. Too much solder applied, joints overheated, joint not cleaned as it cools.

I've also seen soldered fittings that are incorrectly made resulting in leaks.

In both cases done by professional plumbers as well as DIYers.

I've also seen HEP joints not made up correctly by professional plumbers - mainly because they either don't know or haven't been bothered to find out how to do it properly. In one case flooding a downstairs room that was just about to be redecorated. The joints must be made up correctly and the pipe properly secured as I've said before.

Is the use of a HEP joint any more a bulky "DIY" solution than a standard compression fitting on copper? I will NOT solder wet pipe. So if a joint has to be remade or a section of pipe replaced it gets done with compression fittings.

Now I'm not having a go at anyone specifically specifically - no really I'm not. I'm just interested to read that the emphasis seems to be shifting away from actually being a professional installation which can be done in copper, Hep or whatever to merely looking like one.

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